#2. Lionel Messi, Barcelona – $65 million
Salary: $42 million
Endorsements: $23 million
Major Sponsors: Adidas, Samsung, Pepsi, Turkish Airlines, Herbalife
After winning the Ballon d’Or Award four years in a row Lionel Messi finished 2013 in a runner up position. Companies that have invested a lot of money in Messi include Turkish Airlines and Adidas. Under his Adidas sponsorship Messi was able to launch his own brand of athletic shoes. Most recently Messi has been seen in a commercial with Kobe Bryant, centering on a selfie shootout.
Messi was ordered by the Spanish Tax Authority to pay $6.5 million as a result of tax evasion both he and his father were involved in. He is now almost set to sign another contract, this one being the seventh one he has signed since 2005, that will match what Cristiano Renaldo has been earning and will allow Messi to continue staying at Camp Nou after the year 2018.
#3. Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Paris Saint-Germain – $34 million
Salary: $30 million
Endorsements: $4 million
Major Sponsors: Nike, Volvo
The previous football season came to an end for Ibrahimovic when he scored 30 soccer goals, giving him the distinction of being the first person to get that many goals in the last 20 years. As a result he was named player of the year. The deal he had signed in 2012, for three years, was extended by one year. Yet the extension didn’t prevent him from being a successful football player in his country.
Even though he scored two goals during playoffs he did not qualify to compete in World Cup of 2014. Though he lacked in sponsorships he made up for it by making a Volvo commercial. It had 4.7 billion YouTube views due to him hunting to the music of Sweden’s national anthem.
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